Monday, January 12, 2009

Today I'd like to present, for the Butterfly award, Makiko Itoh, of Just Hungry, a blog about Japanese food. Her photos are so mouth watering, and the writing so lucid that I am sorely tempted to try something myself. And the bento boxes she features! Wow, I do wish I could find a Japanese shop somewhere, or even one of those 100yen ones online, to get all that cute stuff - at reasonable prices, the disclaimer that keeps me from getting them! Makiko's blog was one of the first blogs I ever met, plus it is so totally exotic that I can't resist it... yummm!

Although I didn't go along with Genesis, I answered, "When he created mankind."

I was wrong, according to Mum, so I had another shot. I was still wrong. I ran through six days of creation and drew nothing but blank looks. There was nothing more that I could think of. It wasn't until I had run out of ideas that I became aware of the exchange between Mum and Anna. So often with Mum that smile happened. It was her Christmas-tree smile, she lit up, she twinkled, and there was no other place to look. She sort of gathered everything around her. Anna was watching her intently, chin cupped in hands. There they sat, looking at each other, Mum with her wonderful smile and Anna with her intense look. The insulation of the six feet or so that separated them was beginning to give way. Anna drilled away at it with her blue eyes while Mum melted it with her smile. Suddenly it happened. Anna slowly placed her hands on the table and pushed herself upright. The gap had been bridged. Anna's matching smile had to wait while astonishment shaped her face. She gasped, "It was the seventh day - course it was - the seventh day."

I looked from one to the other and cleared my throat to capture their attention.

"I don't get it," I said. "God worked all his miracles in six days and then shut down for a bit of rest. What's so exciting about that?"

Anna got off her chair and came and sat on my lap. This I knew. This was her approach to the unseeing and unknowing infant - me.

"Why did Mister God rest on the seventh day?" she began.

"I suppose he was a bit flaked out after six days' hard work," I answered.

"He didn't rest because he was tired, though."

"Oh, didn't he? It makes me tired just to think about it all."

"Course he didn't. He wasn't tired."

"Wasn't he?"

"No, he made rest."

"Oh. He did that, did he?"

"Yes, that's the biggest miracle. Rest is..."

Think about it. Whether or not you believe in Genesis, or any other such concept, isn't rest such a lovely miracle?

Do you have a little princess on your hands, or even a little prince? The series of books about theLittle Princessby Tony Ross are a great delight at out home, so I was thrilled to find this website featuring the princess, now copyrighted by The Illuminated Film Company / Tony Ross and licensed by TV-Loonland AG.

Its as yet a smallish site, with a few games, few very short videos, and sadly - no way of contacting them. But it is enough to showcase Little Princess, and to act as a springboard for their online shop for all kinds of related merchandise. The outlay is cute, very much like the books, and the use of the phrase "I want to.." immediately resonates with those who have read the books or watched the animated series. As with the books, the entire site is geared towards the younger kids, including the use of the large arrow pointer. You can choose to play, watch the videos, or make - which will lead to some printable activities like colouring and dot to dot.

There are four games. Or rather three. Listening is good for toddlers and those just learning mouse control, as it involves hovering over various objects to listen to their sounds.

Dressing up options are as above. The dress components are presented and just have to be moved to the right place.

Counting rabbits is a nice and simple game for the pre-schoolers.

Catching apples involves use of the arrow keys on the keyboard, but unlike most games of this sort, this is especially made for little fingers. The apples fall real slowly so there is ample time to catch them and accomplish the given task. All in all, a nice sweet site.

P.S. There are books. And then there are 'Ah!' books. I don't recall where I was introduced to this term - it was eons ago, but I have since adopted it for my own. An 'Ah!' books is a book that evokes no other response than 'Ah! what a book!'. It is a book that I can't do without, that I would read again and again and again, and then some more. It may be great literature, or wonderful writing, or magnificent concept, but in addition, it has a certain something that resonates deep within me. I like these books, I respect them, I admire them - but I also, in response, simply say - Yes! "Mr. God, this is Anna" is one of my 'Ah!' books, and you will no doubt see many excerpts now and then. Which are yours?

4 comments:

Hey Di ,,, Totaly luv what U write :) It's a great read ,, & the 'coolest' part is that I no longer have 2 search for new sites for Ursheita [ a sentiment that I'm sure many mums would echo ] All i have 2 do is logon 2 ur blog & I have her off my hands for sm Hrs [ Whew!!] & U have all my thanx for that..Tons of Luv xoxo

Who am I?

What is this about?

Hello, new age internet baby! As times change, so do modes of instruction and entertainment, and the contents therein. Technology brings its own set of skills to master, even if minor ones. 'Hello, net baby' is a blog to showcase my collection of websites for young children. The title of each post will indicate how good I think the site is, on a scale of 1 to 5; the post itself is in two parts - some general chatter, in black, and the 'baby' part, in blue. A postscript section will always follow with strings of thought which are best handled separate from the main post. In some cases, it may even hold the main idea!

Feel free to disregard the extra chit chat and go straight to the section on websites. Your questions, suggestions and comments are welcome.